NEW HAVEN >> Brett Raphael, artistic director and CEO of the Connecticut Ballet, has helped to bring educational programs to Bridgeport, Hartford and New Haven schools since 2006, advocating for a healthful and active lifestyle with the “Let’s Get Fit!” assembly program.

Since he started the program, Raphael said, the number of overweight and obese children in the state has trended downward, something he said inspires him. If there were any doubt that children are making more healthful choices to give them more energy, it may have been laid to rest when second- and fourth-graders at Conte-West Hills School screamed their support for broccoli, clapping their hands and stomping their feet, during Connecticut Ballet’s performance Wednesday.

“It’s not just about storytelling styles or American dance, but it’s also about people considering their food intake,” Raphael said. “It’s a social contract we have with Connecticut and it’s who we are as a dance company.”

The assembly features three routines: a performance with five dancers leaping in workout gear; a comedic jazz routine with a dancer who makes several doomed attempts to sneak in unhealthful foods during a rehearsal; and a puppet show introducing students to the benefits of eating vegetables, fruits, dairy, protein and grain.

Superintendent of Schools Garth Harries, who sat among children during the assembly, said it’s “crucial” to have fitness programs in city schools. The state Department of Education announced its Next Generation Accountability System this month, a report card by which state schools will be graded, which includes physical education as one of its 12 indicators of school success.

“Good physical health and good education comes in many forms,” Harries said.

“This is such an important program to Anthem as we know that teaching kids at an early age about being active and making healthy food choices will stay with them as they turn into adults,” Jill R. Hummel, president of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, said in a statement.

Raphael listed several genres of dance for the students, asking which their favorites were, telling them that they could practice these skills in dance classes.

“You might find that your body enjoys it,” he said.

Conte-West Hills Principal Dianne Spence asked the students to pledge to do their best to avoid junk food.